


Rey and Ben need to write an essay

by reylotrashpiler (Hosnianprime), Trueffle123



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Banter, Ben Solo is a Swolo, Ben Solo is not smart in this one, Ben is on nepotism, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Han Solo swagger, Pride and Prejudice References, Rey Turner, Rey is a nerd, Rey is adoreable, Rey is on scholarship, Schoolgirl Kink, Secret Crush, Smut, Temptation, Turner like Elisabeth Turner like Keira Knightley like Pride and Prejudice, football player Ben Solo, nerd talk, oh no he is too hot for me, oh no she is too smart for me, plaided skirt overload, romcom tropes, sportsjock Ben Solo, study, virgin!rey, working together, yepp we really did that twist
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-22
Updated: 2019-04-22
Packaged: 2019-11-03 21:30:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17885558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hosnianprime/pseuds/reylotrashpiler, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trueffle123/pseuds/Trueffle123
Summary: Geeky Rey Turner is paired up with popular college Quarterback Ben to write an essay on Pride and Prejudice for their English Literature course.When Rey finds out that he hadn't even read the novel until their first study session, she knows she has to do something or risk failing the course and loose her scholarship. So the pair finds a day to watch P&P on DVD in order for Ben to get the gist of it- unfortunately, Ben has troubles concentrating with Rey wearing her plaid skirt so close to him...Excerpt:And here was the thing: if something made Rey even more incredibly sexy in Ben’s eyes, it was how completely oblivious she was to her own charms.Ben Solo had a reputation to uphold as the college’s best quarterback in a decade. Every girl on campus was after him, and he knew that.So… it wouldn't have been acceptable for him to go for the nerdy girl.Even if he wished he could.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello guys!
> 
> I hope you are curious about a dorky/nerdy Rey meets popular Ben - romcom, which we did for the romcom prompt fill for The Writing Den.
> 
> This time: Ben Solo has not only his father's heart but the old man's swagger too and Rey... she is just adorable with her Pokémon pullover :-D 
> 
> Let's see how their little study date will evolve ;-)

 

It was the first class of the day...and Ben Solo cursed the moment he decided to sign up for English Literature 1. (It was compulsory, of course.) A class run by Prof. Holdo. Mondays from 8:00-9:30 a.m.

The sounds were muted around him as he scrolled his Facebook feed, hungover and exhausted from last night’s frat party with the team. Regretting his class choice more and more with each eternal second before the bell rang.

Plus, Holdo was an A-type feminist icon with the vigor of a domme - and Ben just wanted to make it through this semester. He groused about his mother forcing him to go to college, even if he only was there to play football, for at least the fourth time today.

_  
“You have to attend college, Ben. I know you will enjoy it... sooner or later,” Leia Organa had said to him in a soothing voice. Only Ben hadn’t been able to tell if she wanted to soothe her nerves or his with the lie. His father changed his snicker to a cough rapidly, because the old man knew - like father, like son. Ben had always taken after his streetsmart father, always up for a good adventure instead of boring lectures._

His father - as much as Ben wanted to deny it - could always see right through him.

  
“Does anyone have an idea what Austen wants to suggest with that?... Turner!” Holdo’s voice snapped through the air like a whip, jolting him back to the present.

Yikes. She truly must be a dominatrix  on the side.

  
“Her works can be seen as a realistic picture of the English society of her era. But I sometimes think that she wanted to criticize the patriarchal structure of society,” Turner jabbered, clearly cutting herself short on more thoughts.

And Ben just couldn’t help but turn around and face the only person he knew who had such boring ideas at this ungodly hour of the morning.

Rey.

Rey Turner.

Or as the others called her: Nerderella.

Ben’s eyes followed the owner of the name involuntarily, a natural reflex by now. Instinctively checking out Rey. Even though they had known each other for a couple of months now, the very sight of her always hit him unprepared.

Just like now.

All his shaky self-preservation of paying some kind of attention to the lesson suddenly failed.

Because there she sat: her neatly woven hair, the oversized, round, nude glasses sitting on her pointy nose (and freckles. So many freckles). A gorgeous and slim built (probably - no one had ever seen Nerderella naked that he knew of), hidden under thick layers of cotton. He couldn’t see the lower part of her body, obscured from view by the tables and other students, only her 5-sizes-too-big, well-worn sweatshirt with the Pokémon R-team sign.

But Ben didn’t need to see to know what lay beneath, because it frequently featured in his fantasies: her long slender legs, put on display by her trademark plaid skirt..

Because, although most people didn’t consider Rey to be attractive - scratch that - no one considered her at _all_ with the look of a high-school girl wearing clothes from the last century, (no one except Ben, anyway) She was nothing. But not to him… to Ben she was (one of) his fantasies walking straight out his hentais.

Yep. Ben Solo wasn’t proud of the fact that the only form of printed literature he consumed were hentais (and don’t get your hopes up, he didn’t own a Kindle or any ebook reader either). But it is what it is. Thus, even this brief sight of Rey Turner left him subtly squirming in his seat.

“Very good, Ms. Turner. You make an interesting point. Would anyone care to add something to it?” Holdo’s voice lilted once again through the lecture room and the heads turned away from Rey.

But Ben... Ben’s gaze remained on her, almost as if he was in trance. Only to be broken as she caught him looking at her, turning crimson and giving him a shy, friendly wave with her hand hidden under the material of her sweatshirt.

And here was the thing: if something made Rey even more incredibly sexy in Ben’s eyes, it was how completely oblivious she was to her own charms.

Not that he would have admitted this.  
  
Like ever.

Ben Solo had a reputation to uphold as the college’s best quarterback in a decade. Every girl on campus was after him, and he knew that.

Like father, like son.

His roguish smile could charm the panties off of anyone. And if that didn’t do the trick,  the promise to take the girl to the next football team party certainly would.

So… it wouldn’t have been acceptable for him to go for the nerdy girl.

Even if he wished he could.

Plus, Rey was very, very smart and deep down Ben feared that she would be repulsed by his brutishness. The girl read 24/7 while he Was doing pull ups and sprints with the guys.

He sighed. How close it seemed, yet so far away.

That was exactly the moment Holdo choose to adjourn the teaching and announce the next assignment. She required an essay by the end of the term about Darcy’s character, along with an oral presentation. Ben wanted to groan... literally nothing sounded more boring than doing a character study about some fictional dude.  
  
“And this will be a cooperative essay. You write this with your partner, you will create the presentation with your partner, and you will be graded together. Any questions?” Holdo asked, before turning on the overhead projector to throw the list of pairs onto the white wall. She clearly hadn’t given it much thought, pairing them up in alphabetical order.

 _Solo and Turner,_ he read as he went through Holdo’s spreadsheet. He suppressed a little hiss of victory.

Perhaps this assignment wasn’t so bad after all.

Finn, the kicker of the football team and his closest friend, clapped a hand on his shoulder heavily.

“Man, Solo, aren’t you lucky? Being paired up with Rey- you will pass this shit with flying colors!”

Ben couldn’t help but nod. Yes, he was really lucky to have the bookworm of the college as his partner… who assumably had such a vast knowledge of Mr. Darcy as if she had met him herself.

He glanced at Rey, watching her gape at the projection, her freckles glowing on her rosy cheeks.

Jesus, she was hashtag cute and he was high key screwed.

*****

They had agreed to meet up in two weeks’ time for coffee in the cafeteria, after they had read the book (not that Rey didn’t know most of it by heart).

And it was time.

Rey felt her heart race a little as she wet her lips and pushed her glasses slightly up her nose. This assignment was wrecking her nerves. Of course, she was familiar with Ben Solo, the hotshot football player, the _bro_ of Finn (who had been the closest thing to family for her here in the States).

She orbited Ben like a satellite - trailing in the wake  of Finn, only allowed to be in Ben’s vicinity because the other teammates needed her to help with homework and correct their assignments. The one outsider permitted to hang out with the cool guys and the hot girls.

Rey arrived to the cafeteria on time for her study date with Ben.

More precisely, she had arrived half an hour early. She had  piled her notes, Gryffindor pencil case, and her old, worn copy of P&P neatly on the white table.

“It’s not a date,” she reminded herself. She felt  embarrassed to even slightly believe in such delusions. God, she was such a disaster! Getting flustered by her own thoughts.

 _Then why are you wearing your best Star Trek pullover, hmm?_ The treacherous voice in her head snidely remarked.

 _This was the only clean one, laundry day is tomorrow,_ Rey countered.

_Sure,_ the voice deadpanned _. You certainly didn’t save this sweatshirt for today. You definitely didn’t mess up your entire weekly pullover schedule to look your best when you meet him._

God she needed to stop having discussions with herself.

Really.

This was acceptable for anime characters, but not for real people.

 _No one needs to know…_ her own inner voice crooned again.

God, she needed a Pensieve ASAP.

“You’re here early,” her inner dispute was interrupted by Ben’s timber voice and Rey turned around to have a look at him.

Oh God, he looked fantastic...which made her blush even more.

Dark grey washed jeans and a black long shirt clung to his shredded chest. A lopsided sinful grin of a devil turned human on his plush lips.. 

“Hey Ben,” she answered breathily, trying to get all her brain cells to work and to make her skin stop blushing.

Ben looked at the laden table.

“May I sit?” he enquired, but didn’t bother to wait for her reply before tossing his leather messenger bag on the free chair next to her and taking a seat across from her.

He brushed her knee accidently as he sat down, which made Rey draw back her legs as quickly as she could.

“Sorry,” both of them said in union.

A faint of red returned to Rey’s cheeks, realising that a guy of 6’3” needed more space than she was used to.

Ben reached into his messenger bag - a fine leather thing that must have cost a month of her tuition. She assessed the table, crammed with her stuff and realised that Ben wouldn’t be able to place his notes anywhere. Hastily, she tried to create some space on the minuscule table, which (of course) make half of her things roll off. Even more embarrassed, she quickly ducked under the table to retrieve her scattered Gryffindor pens. Unbeknownst to her, Ben leaned back, trying to catch a glimpse of her ass.

In vain. The table was a curse.

“So…” she began after she righted herself, looking him in the eye after glancing at his copy of P&P.

A rather unused copy of P&P…

“How did you like it?” she questioned, becoming more and more self-assured as she realised this conversation was centered around a topic she was very familiar with.

“Ugh…it was long. And interesting.” Ben answered, sounding a bit off. His Adam’s apple bobbling as he averted his eyes.

_Long and interesting? Okay…_

Rey remained still. Quiet. Her curious gaze fixated on Ben’s strong jawline… waiting for him to reveal more.

But… he didn’t.

As the silence became more awkward, Rey tilted her head to the side. “And?”

She started to grow suspicious, her previous flusteredness evaporating. Her eyes narrowed without her realising it.

  
Ben gulped once more before letting his back fall against the fabric of the chair, shrugging innocently. “I didn’t read it, okay?”

At first Rey felt perplexed. Surely he was bluffing? Ben liked to tease, she knew.

She evaluated the way he looked at her, trying to make out whether he just wanted to pull a prank on her.

  
He couldn't really…  
  
Or did he? Rey felt the blood drain from her face.

“But,” she stammered. “But we… agreed?” she squeaked a bit helplessly.

Ben shrugged, sheepishly looking at her.

“‘Msorry?”

  
_Dunderhead._

It was Rey’s turn to gulp now.... watching as Ben simply sat in front of her. A small smile on his face. As if his stupid attitude couldn’t get her in trouble...serious trouble! They were fucking graded _together_.

“You… you… _nerf-herder_!” she growled.

Ben stared at her, on the verge of barking out a laugh and seriously shitting his pants. Rey was swearing in nerd and he knew he was screwed.

“We are graded together, you, _idiot_! I may lose my scholarship because of you and get shipped back to bloody _England_!” she rambled, panicking a little, her accent becoming more and more pronounced

And Ben… he just took the rage in. He oddly felt as if he had transported to a  memory of his mother cursing at his father for some shit he pulled.

Suddenly, his heart twisted. For him, it was only a stupid assignment, football being the first and foremost in his life.

But to Rey… to her it was everything.

“I’m so sorry, Rey,” he tried to apologize again, honestly meaning it this time. 

“Great. He is sorry. Write ‘at least he was sorry’ on my gravestone after I jump off the ship taking me back to the UK,” Rey muttered to herself.

“You know this book is set like 200 years ago?” Ben tried to interject weakly. _See_? He did pay some attention in history!

But Rey was too far gone, immersed in her own sphere as she jumped up from the table,  pacing up and down in a tight line in the tiny coffee. People around them started to stare in curiosity. Ben understood. He would have watched the scene, too, if he were a stranger. But since he was actively involved in this mess, he tried to mimic Rey and think of a solution. His dark orbs followed her every step until his head started to spin, as if tracking a ball in a ping-pong game. Luckily he noticed her Gryffindor pencil case before he got too dizzy and forced his brain to focus on that.  
  
God, she was adorable. Who even used pencil cases nowadays?

“Plan. Plan. Plan. I need a plan, I need a plan,” she muttered incessantly while chewing on her nails.

Her tight little ass was swaying in front of his eyes back and forth… and maybe that was the spark he needed. That skirt… that skirt could have been shorter… Short… Short…

Ben cleared his throat.  
  
_Solution_.  
  
Fuck he needed to come up with a solution.

A clever solution.

A Solo-solution.

But better… he was better than his father… so his solution ought to be better, too. With swag.

Yes - a Swolution! He needed that.

  
And _bang_...there it was.

“Isn’t there a short version of this?”  
  
There had to be. If this bloody book was just as fantastic as everyone said, they must have made a movie of it or something?

Rey stopped carving tracks in the floor. .

“Huh?” she eloquently ventured.

“Shorter version? Like a… movie or something? You know.”

First, Rey shuddered. Shortening Pride and Prejudice! How dare he! Then, she actually remembered… yes. There was a movie and a 5 hour BBC miniseries. Both versions were more than decent.

She sighed. So this was what it had come to. The only way out of this miserable situation. The only way to save her scholarship. Watching a movie.

Fine, they could watch the movie… and she could fill him in on the rest!

  
Ingenious.

Perhaps she had underestimated Ben? Perhaps there was more to him than met the eye beneath all that bravado?

She regarded him for a long moment, not letting her gaze soften. He should suffer for a little bit, at least.

“I don’t have access to any streaming sites. Not on my scholarship, you know.”

Ben blinked at her once more as if she was an alien and had just landed on earth. Literally.  
  
How could someone live without Netflix?  
  
It was the fucking 21st century!

“Perhaps you could play it with puppets then?” he blurted out, picturing Rey sailing across the ocean for a month with a coal-powered ship...

At the death-stare he received, he quickly reconsidered.

“Oh shut up, you,” she dared him to mock her once more and Ben.... let’s say seeing this feisty side of Nerderella did something to him.

“I have a huge TV and all kinds of streaming,” he quickly supplied, licking his lips. “And pizza is on me.”

“And chocolate chip cookies too,” Rey glared at him. “And milk.”

“And those too,” Ben gulped.

Rey nodded, satisfied.

“Well… then when should we meet up? Next week? I don’t have practice on Tuesdays…” he suggested.

And once again he was met with a death glare behind thick glasses.

“No.”

“No?”

“We are doing this today.”

Today? Rey coming over to his room today… Right now.

Okay…

_Shit?_

Did he pack away his hentai? His dirty laundry? His….

“No...Rey, I have things to do…”

“Whatever it is… drop it. Writing this essay is more important than anything else!”

Okay, she was really determined and Ben figured that he wouldn’t get out of this number anytime soon.

“I know. I know, sweetheart. Okay? I understand. I screwed up and this is important… Don’t you trust me?” he asked in the end, trying to give her a puppy look.

“Not one bit,” she declared without batting an eye, her posture as rigid as ever, hands woven in front of her chest.

Okay, she had acknowledged the elephant in the room. Hands down.

Ben stood.

“Then I’ll just have to bribe my way into your trust, sweetheart,” he said with a wink and smile that even he knew was just like his father’s.

Rey blinked at him, stock still and confused. He was towering above her and she had to tilt her head back to look at him. The constellation of her freckles was finally laid out for him and, fuck, she was tiny, and feitsy and so freaking adorable.  
  
“Look,… I’ll start making it up to you right now. What can I get you?”  
  
Rey sighed, shrugging. She knew what he was doing. This charming thing, this… this… sweetness. She needed to resist.

“Don’t tell me you don’t drink coffee, Rey. Everyone does,” Ben coaxed her.

Suddenly the shy girl was back, giving him the second true smile of the day: “I am British, remember? Get me a good cup up tea instead.”

And Ben did just as Nerderella wished.


	2. chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben and Rey watch the movie and have some interesting conversation...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there!
> 
> We loved and cherished your comments!! Many of you wished for more; and as promised - here we go!  
> Right into the study date! ;)

 

Ben lived on campus, just like Rey. But unlike Rey, who lived in a dorm, he owned his own apartment. The apartment, though expensive, wasn’t big. One bedroom, a spacious living room and a dirty kitchen was the little kingdom given him to rule over at the beginning of his studies.

This was definitely one of those perks of being the spawn of a wealthy family that he used to detest as teenage boy, even if his apartment here was smaller than his childhood bedroom.

“Come on in,” he invited Rey somewhat nervously, dropping his bag unceremoniously on the ground next to his entryway stand.

  
He needed to check his apartment before letting her in, just to make sure he wasn’t going to  die of embarrassment if innocent Rey found something she wasn’t supposed to (not that he should have cared, Rey was off limits anyway).

So he did the only logical thing he could think of:

“Euhm… Rey, wait,” he said just as she was about to get out of her thick wool coat. His voice made her pause in annoyance and Ben needed to stop thinking about how cute her pout was.  
  
Regardless how sweet he found the innocent girl, he knew that she was pissed at him.

Again. 

But he desperately needed some time to himself before asking her into his living room. 

_Think Swolo-brain! Come on, work!_

“Uhm…” With a quick step forward he offered to take her coat, which she handed over confusedly. Okay, he was able to stall forty seconds with his act of outdated chivalry, but he needed more!

And that’s when he spotted the leaflet for his local pizza shop on the shoe shelf. 

FUCK yes!  
  
“Sweetheart…” he continued while quickly grabbing the brochure off the shelf and pushed it in Rey’s (ridiculously) small hands.

“Do me the favor and pick something you would like to eat, ok? I need to check the living room for... monsters.”

After giving Rey a meaningful wink, Ben escaped with the speed of light towards his living room, closing the door which separated the rest of the flat from the entryway none too subtly in her face, leaving Rey slightly taken aback.

 _What is this all about, Ben?_ She wanted to asked, but was too afraid of the answer. Ben didn’t seem like the type guy to care if his place wasn’t immaculately clean. So there must be another reason for his… unusual behavior.  
  
_He’s probably checking to see if his latest conquest is still asleep in his bed_ …  _or what if it’s half the cheerleading squad?_

It wasn’t hard to imagine. Ben was so popular among their fellow students that he never needed to go hunting on Tinder. Girls probably threw themselves at his feet all the time, especially with all he had to offer. His skills in football. His wide back and strong shoulders. The way his neck muscles flexed when he took off his leather jacket… oh God, she needed to stop thinking about how hot Ben Solo was. __  
  


Sighing in resignation, Rey turned to check the menu in her hand and tried to clear her mind.  
  
_“Luigi’s traditional Italian Pizza - try the cheesy crust!”_ said a bubble at the right corner of the leaflet.

Rey bit back a snort.   
  
_Oh Luigi, I doubt the tradition of your Ristorante if you think a cheesy crust is authentic…_

But at least he offered Quattro Formaggi, with gorgonzola, mozzarella, emmentaler and grana padano… Rey licked her lips unconsciously, trying to remember when she had last saved enough money to get herself a treat like that.

 _Suddenly the cheese crust doesn’t sound so bad. Hmmm… a cheese explosion._  
  
It was funny how even the thought of food coming to Rey boosted her spirit like a tropical vacation. With a renewed vigor, she started scanning the menu further, wondering which dish Ben would probably get for himself...until she found the handwriting in the margin.

 _“Call me! Nancy <3 04856-3973_” it said if Rey deciphered the lousy handwriting correctly.

Rey furrowed her brows. Yeah. That was exactly what she was talking about.

Meanwhile, Ben was racing around the small apartment in a frenzy. He didn’t really bother packing anything away neatly. Instead, he darted back and forth with his laundry basket in hand, shoving every piece of clothing, hentai, and even some chips bags inside. Once the living room was acceptable, he glanced up and realized that the kitchen was also a mess.

“Fuckkk,” he cursed softly, and with a loud clatter, threw every dirty dish into the sink, turned on the water, and poured a very generous amount of lemon-scented soap over everything.

With one last check, he confirmed that now the place was somewhat more presentable to the object of his desire.

“You… you can come in now. The monsters are back under the bed!” he called out to Rey.

The way Ben sounded had surprised Rey… slightly out of breath but self-assured nonetheless. Her heart only started to pound harder as she realised that she was really about to enter Ben Solo’s personal space. How could anyone be so relaxed with inviting someone of the other sex into their apartment?   
  
_It is probably natural for guys like him to have… female visitors.Besides, it’s just you, Rey. You are making far too much ado about_ nothing.

So with all the confidence she managed to gather, Rey decided to knock on the closed door that separated her from Ben as a gentle warning before turning the knob.

Her heart was beating wildly against her ribcage.

 _Okay, Rey, here you go, to Ben Solo’s apartment!_ It was even more exhilarating than it must have been to walk into Narnia, or cross Platform 9 and ¾.

Ben on the other side … wasn’t sure if he heard the sound of a knock right.

Was someone at the front door?

No, probably not.

Everyone who came to visit him rang the doorbell.

  
This had to mean that Rey had knocked on the door between his entryway and living room. Even though he already told her it was okay to come in.  
  
Damn.  
  
Could she be more innocent?

 _Calm down, Solo. Don’t be creepy,_ He chided himself, willing his lingering erection to STOP interfering every time Rey did something unusually cute.

  
After he inquired her pizza preferences and took care of the order, he instructed Rey to sit down on his couch. She nodded slowly, looking kind of lost as she took in his modest living room as if it was the ballroom of a castle. Like a gentleman, Ben asked her if she wanted anything to drink. Rey’s answer was a steady _let’s get to the bloody movie, Ben_.

The movie. Stalling was over.

“So what’s the title?” Ben asked casually as he unceremoniously flung his body next to Rey on the couch, his arm coming around her shoulders on the sofa.

 _What?_ He just had really long limbs that he liked to stretch out after a long day.   
  
His eyes met Rey’s after he turned the TV on with the help of his remote control, only realizing that she was giving him an impressive glare.

“Pride and Prejudice,” she answered through gritted teeth, as if she couldn’t even believe he didn’t know the film’s title by now.   
  
“Alright,” he said a little defensively, fighting the urge to point out that they could have chosen to give the movie another name besides the original book title.

“There it is,” he said once he found the film online and hit play.

Lilting music introduced a lovely brick house of an English gentleman, surrounded by fields of hay.

Ben wanted to kill himself already. The boredom of Jane Austen’s fictional playground was life-threatening. So instead his gaze wandered to Rey. And how right her long legs looked on _his_ couch.

That plaid skirt began to ride up higher than usual as Rey started to get comfortable, revealing her slim thighs God, they weren’t even half the size of his biceps… He bit his lips so suppress a whine.

He wrenched away his gaze from her and forced himself to look at - what was his name again? _Come on, Solo, focus on the damn movie!_ He tried to reprimand himself and his dick that _Rey’s scholarship depends on you, you absolute garbage man._

All the other thoughts seemed too dangerous at this point.  
  
Twenty long minutes into the film, where the wife and mother called the husband “Mr. Bennett” instead of his given name, the Bennett family had made their appearance on some kind of party. A party that was disturbed by the arrival of a yet unknown group, consisting of two men and a female.

“Okay, this is Mr. Darcy’s first scene,” Rey informed him enthusiastically, her lithe body almost leaping from the couch. Her cheeks _glowed._

He grimaced, not liking how much appeal this shitface Mr. Darcy held to Rey. Was she into these kind of guys? Nevertheless, he was hellbent on helping Rey, so he yet again forced himself to concentrate on their assignment.

Mr. Darcy seemed to be a major character next to Elizabeth Bennett in the novel, Ben figured. Trying to mentally note character traits the protagonists showed so far.

  
The romance between Elizabeth and Darcy seemed non-existent at first. Darcy behaved as if someone had shoved him an enormously stiff broomstick up his arse and Elizabeth seemed wise enough to figure out how much of a dickhead character he was… until he confessed his love to her.

Obviously in the rain, as they were in bloody England.

In the solitude of some tacky pagoda. At least Rey had told him that’s what the building was called. 

With Rey sitting so close to him, Ben could feel her tremble.

  
Was she cold?  
  
He carefully risked a glance at her without turning his head. What he gathered was even worse than her being uncomfortable -  Rey was _excited_. Whatever played out in this scene truly touched something within Rey.

And that’s where he hit the pause button.

“Why?” Rey yelped, seemingly involuntarily, turning to him with a look of utter betrayal on her face. “Why did you pause? This is the best part!”

Ben ignored her protest and turned to face her.

  
“Enlighten me, Rey… how could any woman fall for Darcy?” he asked with a light bewilderment, the question burning on his mind. .

This was only mirrored by Rey. Brows creased, she gaped.

“What… What do you mean _how_?”  
  
“Come on. His act is so lame. First he ignores and even belittles Elizabeth and now he’s madly in love with her?”  
  
He let out a silent snicker, “No sane woman would let him get into her panties like that.”

Rey only blushed, because  not only did she think that this was one of the most romantic things she has ever seen, but she would totally have let Mr. Darcy into her petticoats, if she had lived in that time.

  
Not that she needed to reveal this to Ben.  
  
Unfortunately Ben caught the way she hesitated to respond.

"Don't tell me that this does it for you?" He pinned her down with his question, sniffing out her secret like a bloodhound.

Rey went crimson, shaking her head. She was almost dying of embarrassment, being so transparent to Ben.

  
_DENY, Rey! DENY._

But not a sound came out her mouth.

“I…” she croaked, averting her eyes, staring at the floor and curling up on herself.

Ben leaned closer in his excitement. He had caught her. 

And just like his inner predator told him, he decided to try and push further. Seeing where this could lead him to.  
  
"Don't lie to me, I’m sure your panties are soaked…” he crooned, voice a little hoarse from the sudden onslaught of arousal. Then, leaning closer, as if he wanted to feel her mortification from close up, to inhale her shaky little puffs of breath, murmured, “Who would have thought that our little bookworm felt lust?"

Rey’s face caught fire, her skin so hot she was sure it would peel off. The way he leaned into her personal space, slowly but insistently, knowing his own power over her made her impossibly weak. Her lips quivered. His breath now tingled across her neck, or at least she thought so - she was too afraid to look up into his eyes.

Because she knew that she would give him anything he wanted.

Her real-life Mr. Darcy.

Then she was saved quite literally by the bell.

SOMEONE had rung Ben’s door.  
  
“Ah...the pizza guy…” Ben said airily, looking at the door, quickly drawing his arm back in an attempt to stand up from the couch.

Rey exhaled, relieved.

But just then, Ben leaned back to her, mere inches from her ear, whispering darkly, “We are not done yet.”

Rey sucked in a breath, looking rather flushed. Her hands had curled into fists of the tension without her realizing it. Or maybe to give her arousal some outlet? Her nails were digging crescent shapes into the meat of her palm.

  
_Calm down, Rey. Calm down. He’s just... messing with you._

 __  
Little did Rey know that she wasn’t the only one whose heart was pounding frantically against their ribcage.  Ben gulped and ran his fingers through his hair, trying to will away his too perverted thoughts…  
  
To tell the truth, he had enjoyed what had happened with Rey back on the couch immensely. He even thought about being grateful for the shitty movie and the crap Jane Austen fabricated because now, he felt the thrill of the hunt.   
  
Did this sound a bit pathetic and archaic? Perhaps. 

Nevertheless, Ben had missed the challenge of persuading a woman to be with him. To make her his.

  
Ben felt the thrill of teasing and flirting with Rey, making her unsure and bathing in the light of her blushing cheeks. He wasn’t used to  putting effort into persuading women to sleep with him anymore.

  
Alright, maybe in high school. He had needed to be charming there in order to get panties to drop. But ever since entering college, all he had to do was point out that he was on the football team to score.

And no one got flustered around him.

The crazy bondage he wanted to try? They’d let him.

Any particular dirty wishes? They'd grant him.

A somewhat sad turn, he concluded suddenly, knowing that most men would like to choke him and his displeasure with being good with women in general.

  
Time escaped her, until Ben went to retrieve their order, only coming back to her senses when, just as if nothing had happened, Ben quickly returned into the living room holding two big pizza boxes. He offered her a slice without a plate before jogging to the kitchen to get some Coke to go along with the food.

Rey’s mood changed abruptly as the heavenly smell of freshly baked pizza filled the room. She was used to eating the frozen variety quite often, money tight on her scholarship budget. But this pizza, even if it wasn’t truly authentic Italian, promised to be a level beyond.

She all but _snatched_ the huge box from Ben, not even sparing him a glance. Ben Solo couldn’t hold a candle to the appeals of a free, delicious meal.

Ben looked at her with a little surprise. Every girl he had been acquainted with was more the salad-and-protein-shake type of woman, never the type to...literally snatch a full pizza out of his hands. Not that he minded. Spending time with a woman with a healthy appetite was actually quite nice.  
  
Seriously.   
  
Have you ever been on a date with a wannabe-model, who only ate salad while you ordered three courses, where she just keeps watching you with barely concealed envy, poking on her greens with ennui while you kept stuffing your mouth?

So without second thought, he dived in, too, but his eyes never left the sight of Rey. The pure, unadulterated joy on her face as she scooped up a slice of tender pizza, the cheese runny and hot and just stuffed it into her mouth.

And _moaned._

Loudly. Breathily. With her eyes closed.

He almost choked on his own bite, suddenly grateful for the large box in his lap, because his cock twitched.

Did she...do this on purpose?

  
Ben couldn’t help but double check.

But no. Rey was just genuinely into pizza. No hints of manipulation on her part.

Ben conceded that he might have been the most popular guy on campus, but clearly  Rey’s top choice was this pizza.

  
Not that he could leave it at that.

He couldn’t get defeated by parmesan. That would just be …unacceptable.

Rey was a messy eater, he observed. The tomato sauce was running down her fingers, onto her now exposed forearm, as she had pushed back her long sleeves to devote herself to feasting entirely. She licked her fingers and the side of her arm with abandon.

Ben absentmindedly chewed on his slice, while she worked on her own piece,and felt that there was more to Rey Turner than the short plaid skirt and her braided hair.

The cheerleaders were too tidy and pretentious. Rey was... genuine. Unaltered. Unphased. She wouldn’t get a heart attack over a forgotten bag of chips or some unwashed plates.

  
And even if his aching cock had already decided to make Rey Turner his, his brain began to see the reason behind it.  
  
But how to get her?

  
Oh, he would have to be sweet with her. Even if he tremendously enjoyed testing her boundaries.

Rey now swallowed the bite (Ben once again felt the urge to suppress a whine) and then, as if coming out of a trance, turned to him.

“I was really hungry,” she mumbled. “This pizza is very good, thank you,” she smiled, gratefulness radiating from her face. That was all it took to make her happy? A Luigi’s pizza? No jewelry from Tiffany’s?

Ben was dumbstruck.

  
He observed her silently, while eating his own pizza slice.   
  
Forming a battle plan.  
  
He needed to be clever. Subtle in his approach.

  
Rey seemed so innocent with her braids and Pokémon pullover and the fact that she blushed hard as a lobster told him that she wasn’t as used to male company as she perhaps wished to be. So easily flustered - probably easy to scare off.

“So...Darcy. What do you think is his flaw?” Rey tried to return the conversation to  their project.  
  
“He thinks himself better than anyone else. There are only a few he sees as equals, I think, like the hot redhead and her brother,” he gestured with the pizza in his hand, mouth full. He swallowed, remembering his manners. “But even then, I think he dislikes them at times. Thinks of himself as smarter than everyone. And his only true match is Elizabeth?” Ben hazarded, voicing everything that came to mind. He watched Rey’s face eagerly as she seemed to gape more with every syllable he spoke. Did she think he was spouting utter bullshit?

Or was he right?

“Uhm...yeah. That is a good point, actually. I haven’t thought of it like that before…” she mumbled, rushing over to her rucksack to take out a pen and paper and scribbling down ideas to cover in the essay.

Fuck. He had done it. Finally proven himself to not be dimwitted before Rey. Smartass, beautiful,  geeky Rey.

“It would be interesting to examine if Darcy truly sees himself without equal within his social class.” 

Ben smirked like a man who knew what he was doing, before giving Rey a lopsided grin. “And?”

“And what?”

“Does he?”

Of course, Rey had it all analyzed. She had been obsessed with Pride and Prejudice for years. But she didn’t want to make Ben uncomfortable by dumping her pre-made analysis on him, when he was just starting to discover the joy of unearthing hidden meanings in literature. So, she used her usual tactic to make herself seem less unapproachable. Less smart. More average.

Rey shook her head, laughing a bit. “We’d need to think about that. I don’t know.”

Ben could read Rey somehow really well  She was smart and loved this book. There was no way she hadn’t thought about it beforehand. She was lying.

“Out with it, Turner. I know you have something in your pretty little head.”

Rey blushed, unsure if her cheeks were flushing from the compliment or her failed attempt to fool him. Or was it the fact that he was keen to hear her nerdish thoughts instead of being repulsed by her over-running brain?

“Well… he definitely doesn’t think of Caroline as his equal, he mostly finds her annoying. He advises Bingley to do stuff, sees himself as superior. Which leaves Colonel Fitzwilliam (his cousin), Lady de Bourgh, and Mr. Wickham.” Rey concluded, clearly in her element. Ben couldn’t help but be drawn into her train of thought.

“I don’t think that he sees Wickham really as an equal. He’s poor and a foot soldier.” Ben threw in, trying to help as much as possible.

Ben caught himself staring at Rey. She was positively radiating, her eyes sparkling like fresh springwater in the sunshine. And Ben’s heart was drumming equally wildly. For a moment, he actually had _fun_ doing an English assignment. And not only because of Rey’s sinfully short skirt.

For the first time, he had become wrapped up in a piece of literature. Discovered how much fun it was to unearth the hidden meaning of a classical work. He briefly considered truly reading the damn book for the assignment.

But the look in Rey’s eyes…

She must have also noticed that their initial standoff was broken. Rey cursed herself for forgetting to be cool and distanced with Ben. Now she was dangerously close to actually liking him. The way he made an effort to help her, even if it was his fault that they were in a mess the first place.  It appeared that there was more to Ben then fine abs and distractingly long fingers.

Before today, Rey Turner never had considered that he could be smart too. He was though. Really smart. It just got muddied by the fact that he lacked a passion for academical problems. But now that he actually bothered to make an effort for her, she no longer could argue that he would find her too bookish and boring. She had shown him that reading wasn’t boring at all. That she wasn’t boring at all.

  
Ben, a born womanizer, noticed the obvious change in Rey’s gaze towards him. She looked impressed. Had he found it, perhaps? The holy grail?   
  
Were smart comments on a book the way into Rey’s heart and panties?

Ben’s eyes unconsciously wandered to the exposed skin of her thighs that ended somewhere in the soft flesh of her womanhood. Would he be able to get her wet with more literary remarks about the book?

Ben very much wanted to find out.

He wet his lips, preparing himself for the next move.

  
_Perhaps I should quote Shakespeare and wear a Spock uniform, that would be the key,_ Solo concluded almost sarcastically, eager now that he knew that there was a slim chance.

  
What was hidden under those layers of plaid fabric?

Did Rey wear sexy underwear?

A lace thong, perhaps?  
  
No.

No.

She didn’t seem to be the type.

Perhaps… pink? Oh God, if he could take a peek and spot a pair of nerdy briefs… He would be gone for her forever.

And for the first time, there was a slim chance that maybe Rey would be able to be gone for him too. As Ben wasn’t familiar with Shakespeare, nor did he own a nerdy Star Trek disguise, he racked his brain to come up with a witty remark about Pride and Prejudice.

“So… tell me Rey. Is the type of Darcy what you want in a man?” he asked with a sly smirk, while biting a piece of his pizza. He waited for her reaction.

And it didn’t disappoint.

First, she pushed her glasses up her nose with her greasy hand. Just her pinky finger. Lord, he wanted to lick them clean for her.

Then, she started to fidget. 

Her face crimson as the tomato sauce that she had devoured with a passion. Her posture showing signs of hesitation. Just like an uncertain fawn trapped in the lights of a pickup, Ben had Rey pinned with his words.

She made a show of chewing her bite. Ben knew she was stalling on purpose and now he had caught her trail again.

“I told you we weren’t done with this, Rey,” he reminded her sinuously.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So how did you like it?
> 
> Does jock Ben make your heart throb, too?  
> How do you like our nerdy Rey?  
> Do you think Ben will be able to win her over?
> 
> If you enjoyed the fic PLEASE leave us a comment, a kudo and/or bookmark!   
> (Yes, we can be bribed with comments to post faster...just FYI :wink: )
> 
> A very special thank you to Erulisse17 for Beta-Reading! 
> 
> Part 2 of this chapter will follow shortly <3 (we also welcome speculations about its content heheh :D)


	3. chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya guys!
> 
> We are back...and we were literally overhelmed by the amazing comments you left us!
> 
> And because you are all so supportive of Ben and Rey - we decided to add a few chapters to the original draft...
> 
> So there will be MORE.  
> 
> 
> More short skirts.  
> More muscular necks...  
> and more hot and sweet moments!

 

“I…” Rey cleared her throat, still avoiding his gaze as her cheeks reddened even more. “I don’t see why anyone would not want him if he were living now.” 

 

Ben leaned back, amused. 

 

“Well. I think he is a faggot,” he declared with a grin, waiting for Rey to explode. He simply loved teasing her. 

 

“What?!” Rey screeched, perplexed - as if she had been insulted herself.   
  
Ben took the heat of the moment to lean closer. He needed this move to sit and score… there was no trying.  _ Do it, or do it not. There is no trying. _ He recited the wisdom of some ancient guy his uncle used to talk about…

 

“Yeah. I think he is boring and arrogant. Really, if he really liked Elizabeth he should just have manned up and confessed it. He has weak excuses. Her social status? Well, if you find someone you love, there is no such thing as social status standing between you,” he declared heatedly. Secretly, he wanted to pat himself on the shoulder. 

 

That was smart, wasn’t it? Even insightful? Maybe (hopefully a lot) romantic?

 

What he didn’t anticipate was how Rey reacted. 

 

Instead of staring at him like a star-crossed lover, she averted her eyes shyly and muttered. 

 

“You only go out with the hottest girls of the university, ” Then she reached for her glass of  Coke and chugged it down. 

 

“What?” he stammered, flabbergasted. 

 

Rey’s hold tightened on the empty glass, and she stared into it as if it had something interesting on the bottom. 

 

“I said,” she said, more clearly and shakily, “that you’re so much like the character you claim to hate. Maybe that’s why you hate him! You’re also after the hottest girls, you have a lot of money, and now that you screwed up, you try to bribe your way into my good graces with food.” 

 

Ben gaped. The gall! She had fire...and he wanted her even more because of it. He was used to girls falling over themselves to please him. To say the  _ right thing.  _ Rey wasn’t like any other girl he had ever met. 

 

“I’m not like Darcy,” he declared, shoving aside his pizza box, pinning her down with a stare. “In fact, if a guy like Darcy would fancy you, I’d break his jaw myself. You are unique, Rey. You are pure, and honest, and entirely something else.” Ben spoke with determination. 

 

His posture told Rey that he meant what he had said about fighting for her… oh heavens, no one had ever fought for her, and it made Rey’s heart hammer in her chest like there was no tomorrow. Was this really happening to her?    
  
Did Ben Solo earnestly like her? No. This couldn't be anything else than just him smooth-talking. 

 

“Then you can start by breaking your own jaw, Ben,” she hissed. “Because that’s what you are doing right now, aren’t you? Trying to get in good with me so I write your paper, too....” she accused, sounding almost bitter.    
  
There was no way Ben Solo, the hottest guy on campus, would fancy her.   
  


_ Her,  _ of every girl. 

  
Rey knew what people saw her as… she knew the ugly little nicknames people called her…   
  


_ Nerderella _ . 

 

“No, I am not!” he insisted. “I…” Ben hesitated, his big right hand now going through his hair, and Rey couldn’t help but watch Ben Solo putting on a face of desperate need. 

 

Oh - he was a good actor. But not good enough to fool her! 

 

“I have noticed you… for a long time now. And the essay? I don’t really give a fuck about the essay! I am here because I know how to catch a football, and  my uncle is a high ranking professor.  Nothing else matters  to the university...” he answered, trying to convince her of the pureness of his intentions.

 

“Yeah, everyone notices me,” Rey waved him off.  “I am strange…” Rey muttered, averting her eyes embarrassedly and willing her heart to stop hammering.

 

“What? No! I noticed you because…” Ben paused. There was no amount of arguing that could convince her. He had better just tell her straight as vodka.  “You’re out of my league, Rey!” Ben blurted out the simple truth.

 

And the world stopped turning. 

 

“What?” Rey asked, staring at him flabbergasted. Before she could escape or her brain could make something up, Ben seized the chance and got a hold of her hand. Bringing it carefully towards his face while gently caressing her skin, his rich and deep eyes never left hers.

 

“You’re right, I’m sticking to my social standard. But you are out of it because you’re  _ above _ it. You’re smart. You’re…” he inhaled, screwing his eyes shut. “You’re cute,  _ adorable, _ and… and… you’re not fooling around.” Now his cheeks were tingling from the blush that was creeping onto them. 

 

“I never thought I would get to spend time with you… and… and you’re even better than I imagined.” He licked his lips nervously. God, honesty wasn’t a move he had ever used to get a woman. He was completely off-script here, his usual line of seduction thrown out the window. He just honestly - purely - wanted to be with her. Not only today.  

 

“And, if you’ll let me… I’ll show you how much better I can treat you than that bloody Darcy did Elisabeth. I’d…” he wet his lips, praying that his words wouldn’t be too much for shy Rey, “I’d  _ worship _ you, Rey. Like you deserve. Take care of everything you want me to.” 

 

Rey scanned his eyes with a slight frown, and Ben sighed, letting his head hang. 

 

_ That’s it. I made a fool out of myself for nothing.  _

 

Rey didn’t move. Her hand rested in his, as if she had forgotten it was there.

 

A silence settled over them. 

 

Then, after it stretched beyond an uncomfortable limit, Rey cleared her throat.

 

“What… what do you mean…  _ worship?” _

  
Ben’s eyes immediately twinkled, the smirk returning to its permanent residence on his lips, and his cock twitched in  joy. 

 

“Oh… I have thought of many ways to worship you, sweetheart,” he began, now back on familiar territory, his left hand holding her right in his palm. Now, he lifted his right too, singling out her index finger, so he could run the tip of his pointer finger along it back and forth.

 

“Every time I saw you around campus, with your supermodel legs in that… sad excuse for a skirt…” he began seductively, inviting her into his twisted fantasies, “I had to hold myself back not to just bend you over one of the desks and uncover your perfect ass and… ”

 

Now, instead of speaking - because Ben wasn’t good with words - he drew the finger he had between his towards his lips, and sensuously running his tongue along the slit between her pointer and middle finger until he dipped his tongue in the junction  _ deep. _

  
Rey’s breath hitched in her throat, her lower abdomen clenching along with the rest of her. 

 

_ Kriff _ .

 

Seemed like Ben had oral talents...for sure...even if he lacked the words.   

 

Moreover, he was willing to offer her a sample of what he was capable of… eagerly. 

 

Question was: was  _ she _ ready to accept? 

 

Ben Solo was a known womanizer. How could she know that he really meant what he said, and wasn’t lying to get into her pants? What if she became the ridicule of the whole campus, Ben Solo’s latest conquest? What if Ben had a bet with his football buddies to get her to sleep with him, and a nice prize was waiting for him? 

  
“I don’t know Ben…” she said hesitantly. She was truly unsure. This...whatever amazing thing Ben was doing with his skilled tongue...wasn’t part of her world. “I think,” she said as she scrunched up her nose, “I think you would be disappointed. I've only ever done this,” she vaguely gestured with her hands, “ _ thing,  _ with only one guy at a comic-con. And he was convinced he could make me come with his  _ spells... _ ”   
  


And Ben… He couldn’t believe it.    
  
“I didn’t feel anything magical though…” she admitted, fighting the urge to just run off. 

 

Ben was enraged. Had she just  admitted that she let a random Harry Potter nerd try things with her?!   
  
That was like...the most cliché thing to happen to Rey… and it was no wonder that the guy had failed.    
  
Rey could see Ben’s adam’s apple bob. He was fighting the urge to just show her how good he could make her feel, and make up for the fruitless fumblings of the guy before him. 

 

He would need to be the best he had ever been, then. 

 

“Rey…” he murmured. “I know you don't trust me but… believe me when I say that this  _ should  _ feel magical. And I would make you feel magical. Not with a spell, but with my own hands. And every part of my body, if you want me to,” he almost pleaded, his breath tickling her ear. He sounded more desperate than a student begging for a better grade to save their semester. .

 

Rey looked at him, scrutinising his expression. He seemed to be so raw and open. Honest. There was nothing of the bravado which normally characterised him. 

 

Which was good because… because there was no denying how  _ curious  _ she was about what that tongue could do to her in a place she only ever heard about… 

 

Still, she felt a little nervous. A little out of breath. A little too weak to resist, like she should have. 

 

“Make me feel magical, then, Ben,” she whispered after a short pause, her heart hammering with excitement. 

 

Ben looked at her then, carefully considering her. He could see how on edge she was… about something new, something she had no idea about. Ben wanted nothing more than to give it her everything. To taste her down there, hear the sounds she would make… 

 

But… there was a slight rigidness to her; anxiety, he realised. She was pushing herself too hard, taking things too quickly. 

 

No. The time to make her feel magical with his body hadn't come yet. He wanted her with pure bedroom eyes and open to the things he wanted to do to her. 

 

There were other ways he had to make her feel magical first, he concluded. 

 

_ Take this slow and nice, Solo.  Don't make the same mistake that pathetic nerd guy had made.  _

 

“Thank you,” he murmured and swiftly pressed a chaste kiss to her cheek, then retreated. 

 

Rey's breath hitched in her throat, and she stared at him in confusion. Was that all? Sure, her cheeks tingled pleasantly. Maybe it was already magic? But the wonders didn't cease just yet. 

 

“Shall we continue our analysis?“ Ben asked angelically after clearing his head with a small bite to the knuckles of his clenched fist. “Maybe you can convince me that this Darcy guy isn't a prick after all,” he winked. 

 

Rey loved this book. For her sake, he would be interested as well. 

 

After considering his words, Rey tried to redirect her thoughts on Mr. Darcy. She heard herself resume her previous thoughts and soon a conversation developed. Back to familiar territory, Rey didn't even realise how she relaxed into their work. Ben proved to be surprisingly invested, and after some more arguing he conceded that maybe Darcy wasn't the worst thing that could have happened to Elisabeth. 

 

Soon, the sun was setting, and Ben suppressed a yawn. 

 

_ I have overstayed my welcome,  _ Rey cringed immediately,  _ especially because I can't give him what he wants.  _

 

“Alright, I think we have made a lot of progress today,” she declared somewhat skittishly, “Let's continue this another day?“

 

Ben nodded with another yawn. “I need to go to training soon, anyways.”

 

Rey packed her stuff up and Ben walked her to the door, waiting patiently until she slipped on her jacket and backpack. 

 

Wordlessly, she went to let herself out. 

 

“Well, euhm… thank you for the pizza,” she said, awkwardly shifting her weight from one foot to the other - unsure what else to say. 

 

_ Thank you for voicing my sexual desires that even I had no idea about? Thank you for the obscenely erotic finger-licking?  _

 

“No need to thank me,” Ben waved her off, and it looked like he meant it. 

 

Rey yanked on the door to leave the apartment, but it was locked. 

 

She blushed. 

 

_ Idiot. Everyone locks their door.  _

 

Then, with the softest smile she had ever seen on him, Ben stepped up to her, gently unlocking it. 

 

She craned her neck to look at him. 

 

“I believe I still owe you the cookies though,” Ben rumbled with a glint in his eyes. 

 

He was so close again, she could clearly smell his cologne and the fresh scent of the detergent he used. She wanted to bury her face in his expensive clothes. 

 

“Would you like to visit the Sirius café with me sometime soon?“ he asked with a very honest and hopeful expression on his face. 

 

Rey gaped. That-That she did not expect. 

 

“The one that’s in a bookstore?“ The wordsslipped from her lips. She had always wanted to go, but never really had found the time. The concept of a coffee shop within a bookstore was strangely sacreligious to her - but at the same time, united two of her favourite things in one place. Books and cakes. 

 

She was feeling pure excitement at the prospect. 

 

“That one, yes,” Ben confirmed, still smiling like an idiot. 

 

“I… yes!“ she said hastily, grinning. 

 

“Good. The day after tomorrow?“

 

“Sounds good. But… will you be able to make progress on our project so soon? I know you're busy and - - - ”

 

“It's not a study date, Rey,” Ben interrupted her. “It's just a date-date,” he explained with the same crinkle on his lips. 

 

Her jaw worked uselessly, trying to formulate words. 

 

__ Date? With Ben Solo?   
  


“Unless you don't want it to be,” he added insecurely, worrying his lips, “Then it's just a study date with cookies.”

 

“No! I mean… yes, I want it to be… a date, that is. A real date, and…”

 

He stopped her rambling by placing a finger on her lips. The way she stared up at him - with doe eyes from under long lashes, her cheeks painted rosy from her excitement - he was the most fortunate guy on campus, getting to see this little flower blossom for him and no one else. 

 

Ben then leaned closer to her, stopping just a hairbreadth away from her soft lips. She tensed again, but after he saw her eyes flicker to his lips, he didn't hesitate. Very gently, he pressed his lips to hers for a long kiss, until she melted into him and he felt her hand steadying herself on his chest. 

 

“See you in two days then, Rey,” he murmured, running his thumb along her jaw in a featherlight touch. 

 

“Ye-yes… s-see you,” she stammered,  halfway tripping on her own wobbly legs as she exited his apartment and made for the elevator. Briefly, she could see Ben watch her from the doorway - as if to make sure she was safe  - or even real. 

 

Her heart felt like it was going to burst with happiness. 

 

She was going on a date with Ben Solo! 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright...our fav couple will have a hot date next.
> 
> What do you think-
> 
> will Ben screw up Han Solo style?  
> What will Rey wear to their date?  
> Will Ben manage to get into her panties?
> 
> Please let us know what you think AND continue being amazing by dropping us a comment, a kudo and/or bookmark this <3
> 
> Also a very special thank you to the amazing @'MyJediLife' for betaing this chapter!  
> She has a lot of fics you should really go and try out- IMMEDIATELLY ;-)
> 
> xoxoxoxxo


	4. The date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello guys!
> 
> Thank you for sticking with us at Ben's journey to obtain Rey's heart <3
> 
> Today we will witness our favourite couples first date...and obviously it won't go as planned!

In the following two days, Ben found himself even more distracted than usual. He also caught himself grinning like an idiot for no apparent reason.    
  
His project with Rey was going well. Their essay was halfway done and they were on track to finish by the deadline, even if it took him a few long evenings to actually write his part of the essay…    
  
And the thing with Rey seemed to be going well, too. At least, that’s how it felt. To him, anyways.

 

He had never dared hope that Rey would accept his proposition so easily. Maybe his interest in the book had truly worked wonders?    
  
Ben thought back at his timetable...Rey and he wouldn’t have any classes together until their  _ date _ … and so they had only contacted each other via calls or chaste texts since their last meeting.

 

To tell the truth, he was both relieved and delighted when the day of their date finally came.    
  
He needed to see her again. The memory of her in his apartment, eating pizza like a supersexy carefree angel, haunted him beyond measure.    
  
Needless to say that he wasn’t able to come up with ways to jerk off to her mental image anymore. He had browsed through all his favourite porn sites, looking for videos featuring an innocent-looking girl wearing a cute uniform or something, but it had always felt wrong. Not enough. Either the actresses were too slutty in comparison to his sunshine, or had the wrong hair colour, the wrong stature, or they didn’t have freckles.    
  
Damn… he had developed a new freckle obsession ever since getting to know her better.   
  
Regardless - nothing he had used as a replacement to get his mind and dick going- felt as good as the thought about the things that Rey could perhaps give him… or  the things that  _ he  _ could give  _ her. _

 

One day.

  
Perhaps after their date?   
  


After they have submitted their Pride and Prejudice essay?   
  
Ben felt his cock twitch in interest, making him horny as hell. Internally, he was afraid that he would just pull the ultimate mindless Solo stunt and somehow get her  angry at him- blowing his chances once and for all.

  
Trying to relax some more, Ben looked down the empty corridor of Rey’s student housing unit and let his dominant hand wander into his jeans in order to “readjust” himself. 

 

He couldn’t knock at Rey’s door with a visible boner poking against the coarse fabric of his jeans. Looking like a desperate oversized stray cat in love, ready to woe the feline of his affection by all means… No, that was just creepy and gross.  
  
He could do better than that.  
  
Feeling his heartbeat pick up with every door he passed, his engine was about to go into overdrive as he finally spotted her name on one of the apartment’s doors.

 

***

 

Rey was wrestling with the final touches of her make-up, fighting her shaky hands. Ben Solo would be here any minute, and she was not even close to being ready for their date. Over the past few days she had contemplated cancelling the whole thing multiple times. When she had agreed, under his spell, caving to her own needy heart, it seemed like a good idea at the time.

 

Sometime later, in her tiny dorm, the doubts started to torment her. That she didn't belong with him. Wasn't cool enough for him. 

 

But then she remembered how affectionate Ben had been with her,  how he told her he thought she out of his league and summoned her courage to believe it.

 

It was true that Ben had his flaws, such as never having read Pride and Prejudice before - a flaw bordering on a sin. But nevertheless, she still liked him. 

 

So why should the idea of Ben liking her the way she was be any crazier?   
  


Just as she was about to apply her mascara in order to draw attention to her eyes (a must do thing according to Rose), the sound of the doorbell made her jolt in surprise.    
  
Damn… she wasn’t finished - and somehow this bloody mascara didn’t work! It was the third time she had tried to apply the black liquid with poor results.  The first time she had gotten it into her eyes, the second time it smeared, and now- it was too late.   
  


“Karabast,” she muttered, hastily scrubbing the traces of her failed attempts off before scurrying to the door. 

 

“Hullo?” she inquired, her body trembling with excitement.

 

“Hi.”

 

Her breath caught in her lungs at hearing his voice rumbling outside her door. Even the distortion of of the wood between them couldn’t take away the magic of his baritone. 

 

“Ben,” she gasped, surprised.  _ Panicked. _ Had she really just wasted a whole  hour preparing in front of the mirror without realizing it? Now Ben was here, and she was so utterly unprepared in every sense of the word. 

 

“Let me in.” The big bad wolf coaxed her.  _ As if she needed the persuasion... _

 

“I… I’m not quite ready,” she stammered. Her heart was beating frantically. Kriff. 

 

“I’d like to see you finish dressing,” he purred, his voice not faltering at all.

 

Rey actually giggled girlishy at his directness.

“My clothes are all on, silly, it’s just my make-up that…”

 

“You don’t need any make-up, Rey,” he chuckled in return. “Let me in, Rey. Please.”

 

She opened the door slowly, her gaze fixated on the material covering her from her thighs.    
  
She felt shy all of sudden.   
  
Too shy to look Ben in the eyes. Afraid that he wouldn’t like the way she looked. That he would hate her apartment. That this was all a dream and he would just turn around, mumble an apology claiming that he had a lapse of judgement before walking away.

 

She had half a mind just to shut the door in his face, turn the locks, and wait until he left her for good. Then they would be back in their separate worlds. 

 

But the paralysis of her panic solved everything when Ben Solo, somewhat out of breath after climbing seven flights of stairs, looked at her. 

 

“My, aren’t you pretty,” Ben praised her, and Rey felt a rush of colour painting her cheeks. Somehow, she knew that Ben Solo, a quarterback, would not lose his breath over such little exercise, which meant  -that his breathlessness was because of her. 

 

Ben knew that he had been right all along: the loosely fitting thick pullovers indeed have been hiding slight curves and an athletic build, which had now been revealed by her tight-fitting black shirt. The long sleeves emphasised her slender arms and the off-shoulder cut of her shirt put her delicate neck and creamy skin on display. 

 

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.   

 

To his absolute delight, Rey did not seem to own anything else other than plaid skirts. Ben suddenly doubted that he would be able to be gentleman enough and take Rey out. No. He suddenly wanted to shove her back into her apartment, lock her door and throw the keys away. Because he had unearthed a diamond - a diamond he wanted entirely for himself.  

 

And he would have it.    
  


He  _ had _ to have it.    
  


But he would not capture her. He would tame her like the small prince had tamed the rabbit, until she wanted to be with him forever.

 

Rey shyly looked up, her gaze wandering from Ben’s Nikes, up his long and muscular legs until her vision took in the hem of a navy blue shirt, the fabric stretching just at the right places on his broad chest.   
  
Finally their eyes met.   
  


Rey’s heart skipped a beat.   
  


There he stood - hardly fitting under her doorframe. She saw everything every girl wished to see in a man’s eyes.    
Dilated pupils. A hungry but heartful look. Desire.   
  
“May I come in?” he cleared his throat after the second of silence and Rey chuckled nervously, before stepping to the side.   
  
She didn’t miss how Ben looked around her room, staring a bit too long at the Spock poster right above her single bed before he turned around again, offering her a smile: “I got you something…”   
  
Rey tilted her chin a little, regarding the incarnation of the original man as he calmly looked for something in the pocket of his leather jacket- only to withdraw a pack of Haribo’s gummies in the shape of Hello Kitty.   
  
“I saw them in the store yesterday. And since  you like sweets they struck me as something you might like.”   
  
Rey felt herself melt. She loved those Hello Kitty gummies (not that she was picky about her Haribos in general) and it made her heart clench seeing the way Ben regarded her hopefully. As if he desperately needed to know if he got this right.   
  
“Thank you. I do like them. A lot.” And then, shyly, she surged on her tiptoes and pressed a chaste kiss to Ben’s freshly shaven face,  which was only possible because he decided to meet her half way with bending down a bit.

 

He smelled like aftershave and cologne - the one from the commercials. The one that made all the women fall for you… not that he have needed it. Ben was a living advertisement himself anyway. 

 

“Are you ready to go?” Ben inquired (like a real gentleman), just to get Rey to move out of the apartment, because that innocent, sweet kiss made it harder and harder for him to contain himself. He needed to be out of this apartment with her in five minutes or he would pry off her clothes piece by piece and eat that sweet little cunt of hers until she begged him to stop. 

 

“I just need to finish putting on my make-up…” Rey mumbled. 

 

“Rey. Sweetheart. Just wash it off and get your shoes. I liked you before you wore make-up, and you don’t need to start wearing it now,” he said, leaning his forehead against hers and murmuring reassuringly.

 

And Rey really meant to protest... but that was such a sweet thing of him to say that she lacked the strength.

  
“So you think I’m all good like this?” she asked playfully, stepping two steps away from Ben before twirling a little.

 

She had absolutely no idea where this coyness came from and, admittedly, her heart jumped in her throat again.

 

But enjoying- the dumbstruck look he gave her was more encouragement than she had ever needed. Ben was trying to get to know what she liked, and she was also keen on getting his tastes right. Ben was in awe, like she had single handedly freed the house elves.

 

He truly appreciated everything he saw on her; the long legs, the almost see-through black tights that had a little hole at the backside, the plaid skirt…  Ugh. She would be the death of him. 

  
“I do,” he heard himself speak, hoarsely, like a fucking creep, and he quickly cleared his throat and added, “You look even lovelier than usual.”

  
“Then we are good to go!” she exclaimed with high enthusiasm, turning to grab her coat, and Ben basically rushed towards the exit, knowing it was time to get going.   
  
They talked a bit about how his training went on their way down the stairs, exchanging harmless banter about how his team should come to this staircase in order to work on their stamina.   
  
Until the chilly breeze of the air hit and they began walking.    
  
Rey chatted. She told him about her day with al bright smile and adorable antics, but all he could focus on was the thought of holding her hand. He wanted her close, to stake his claim on her.   
  
But there was also hesitation.    
  


Would he scare her off if he just grabbed her hand?   
  


Would it seem pathetically needy?   
  
No, he needed to be patient and wait for a chance that fortune might gift him. 

  
The chance came to lucky Solo (no wonder his team uniform had lucky number seven) a second later; when Rey, in her enthusiastic retelling, almost stepped off the pavement in front of a car, and Ben reacted with the speed of light, grabbing her hand firmly.

 

“Careful, sunshine,” he mumbled, sounding a bit out of breath at the adrenaline rush, fighting the urge to press her against his chest and never let her go again.

 

Rey fisted his shirt, her eyes wide open. 

 

“You saved me,” she gasped in awe. Looking at him as if he was the reincarnation of a knight in shining armour from one of her books.

 

And he truly felt like a knight, fighting to deem himself worthy of a noblewomen’s attention… and his prize was that she didn’t withdraw.

 

Ben gulped. The fright of losing Rey before he could have really found her pressed on his mind. 

 

With a gentle brush of his finger against her cheek, he murmured,“Who would save me from failing this course if I lost you?”

 

Rey laughed and held his hand until they reached the bookstore.

 

***

 

Rey shone even brighter surrounded by  books than he had ever seen, guiding him through the racks with her favourite authors, telling him about what she liked in each novel.

 

It was surprisingly fun.    
  
It was even fun when she asked him about the last book he read (“not required for a class” she emphasized).    
With a smirk, he lead her to the advice book section and handed her a copy of “Strong Abs: Over 70 Exercises to Develop  a Six Pack”.   
  
It earned him a light smack on his arm,  but because Rey was the epitome of a lightweight, the impact of her balled fist to his muscle didn’t hurt at all and he feasted on the blush that coloured her cheeks.

  
“Are you thinking about my six pack now, sweetheart?”   
  
Rey turned crimson at his teasing, her mind obviously working on a comeback. But there came none. 

 

She  _ was  _ thinking about his body. 

 

Before she could control herself, biting her lip, she nodded. 

 

Ben laughed incredulously, slightly shaking his head. 

 

“You’re one of a kind, Rey Turner,” he whispered wickedly and smacked her on her peach shaped ass playfully - testing out how far he got with his cheekiness. 

 

She yelped, her face tomato red, but still grinned like an idiot.

 

His girl liked to be desired. 

 

After piling at least 10 books for Rey and one - very thin one - for himself on the counter, Ben paid for the whole bunch with a swift swipe of his credit card before Rey could  protest.

 

_ I am going to spoil you rotten, sweetheart.  _

 

Then, they sat down to order in the coffee shop. 

  
His gaze swept down Rey’s neckline as she ordered her chai latte and a New York style cheesecake, only snapping out of his trance as the elderly waitress took his order.

 

“So…” Rey began trying to sound nonchalant, “how did you get into football?”

 

Ben chuckled. Oh, those sweet memories. 

 

His eyes glazed over with fondness, Rey noticed, and he stared into the past with his chocolate brown eyes, the whole coffee shop forgotten. 

 

“I always liked the sport. I remember my dad watching college football on TV, betting on the games,” he began. 

 

“My parents have never agreed on anything, you know. There was a lot of arguing. Both of them wanted the best for their only child. Mum always wanted me to go into science. She wanted me to compete in science fairs, wanted to turn me into a scientist- just like my uncle.”

 

He huffed. Even if he loved his mother, it still hurt that she could never accept him for what he was. A sports jock. 

 

“My dad understood me better,” he mused, as if only talking to himself, but he felt Rey’s attentive gaze on him. 

 

He never had talked about such personal stuff on a date with a girl before. No one had been interested enough. All the other girls had only wanted to take cute couple photographs (with his chiseled body on display, of course) to post on Instagram and whatnot, to rub themselves off on the aura of his fame. They were after the status that came with fucking him. It felt refreshing to be able to open up for someone. Ben felt that his secrets would be safe with Rey. His gorgeous, attentive Rey. 

 

He cleared his throat. “Dad somehow understood that I couldn’t sit still for two minutes,  so he decided to drive me to the local team’s try-outs.”   
  
A deep chuckle erupted from Ben’s throat at the memory: “I think he even lied to Mum that he was taking me to some science club. His plan worked for a couple of weeks… until it didn’t.”   
  
Rey’s eyes lit up in curiosity: “Oh no, what happened?”   
  
“I broke my wrist and came back with a cast. My dad has always been creative with words, but Mum didn’t buy it that I broke my bones holding a pipette.”

 

She laughed tenderly at that, taking a little spoon full of her cheesecake in between laughs: “Your family sounds funny.”

 

She wished the longing in her voice wasn’t so apparent. But maybe it was only to her.

 

Ben snorted. 

 

“That’s one way to describe them.”

 

After a couple of moments of silence, Ben looked at Rey.

 

“What about you? Did your parents try to trick each other?“

 

It was meant as a light-hearted question, and Rey had expected it. It still hurt all the same.

 

With an attempt of a smile, Rey answered a little sourly, “I… I wouldn’t know.” She cleared her throat. “They’ve certainly tricked me,” she quipped, but there was no real humour in it.

 

Ben's face darkened as he carefully reached for her hand and started to caress her skin with his thumb.

 

“How so?“ he asked, softly, feeling that he was treading on thin ice.

 

It didn’t take long for Rey to open up and reveal something about her own past.    
  
Ben had never thought that she grew up in the system - bouncing from one foster family to the next until she stayed with a woman named Maz.    
  
It all made so much more sense now why she was so dependent on doing well in college… and it emphasized for him the need to give his all in writing the essay with Rey.

 

“Anyway…” she began, sounding a bit timid as he had gotten a glimpse in her not so merry childhood- signaling him that this was a sentimental topic not to be touched again soon.

 

She felt embarrassed for being a strange girl, who couldn’t even trade silly childhood memories with her date. And she didn't want his pity. 

 

Strangely enough, Ben seemed to be more murderous than anything. She felt that he was protective of her again.

 

Just as Ben opened his mouth to say something, someone hollered his name. 

 

“BEN!” a voice erupted from behind them and Ben felt a strong palm being placed on his shoulder. For once, the quarterback wasn’t sure if he was happy for the interruption, or if he wanted to curse Stewart McMillan, one of his teammates, for intruding.

 

“Man, I didn’t know you come to places like this!” his teammate exclaimed.   
  
“Stew,” Ben greeted, sounding a bit terse. He noticed  that Rey shrunk a bit into her seat at the other men’s straightforwardness and she politely extracted her hand from his concerned one.

 

Ben wanted to reach out and yank it back but thought better of it. Stew's presence irritated him even more, now that the guy had made Rey feel uncomfortable. He began to sense how far out of her comfort zone she was being in public with him, and Stew just had ruined the fragile ease he managed to create with her.

 

“Well, I like coffee,” Ben answered, thinking hard of how to tell the guy to just fuck off. Didn’t he see that he was busy here? On a date?

 

“What can I do for you?” Ben asked rather curtly, hoping that Stew wasn’t for once as thick as he was believed to be.

 

“I- wait! Are you guys studying or something?”

 

“No.” Ben pressed through gritted teeth, his dark eyes daring the other guy to just get the clues right about what was happening here.

 

In vain. A wall would have been more sensitive.

 

“Well, then it isn’t bad I interrupted,” Stew declared with a grin. “Whatever it is you are doing. You're coming to ARTO-DETO tonight, right?” he asked Ben, completely ignoring Rey. “Karen,” here the guy winked at Ben meaningfully, “asked me to to remind you to bring some music.”

 

Ah, the party.   
  
He remembered something about a student frat party at the ARTO-DETO house -  the official frat house of the football team. Not that he planned on going anymore now that he was spending his evening with Rey. But perhaps it wasn’t a stupid idea. He could take Rey (if she was free) and get to spend more time with her, thus turning the evening into a full-night first date.    
  
“Tell  _ Karen,”  _ Ben angrily intoned her name, trying to convey to Stew that Karen wasn't anything more than a nuisance to him, “I won’t make it with the music,” he began, not feeling obliged to bring anything at all. “I am on a date and I won’t be home in time.”

 

“A date?” Stew asked, flabbergasted. 

 

It was only then that the penny dropped and the other football player finally noticed Rey, who tried her best to hide behind her gallon-sized chai tea latte. Stew's face told Rey everything there was to tell, even if he didn’t utter a word. 

 

He clearly thought that this was some kind of prank. His face froze and contorted somewhere between a laugh and utter disbelief. 

 

But Ben had been observing him closely as well. That, Stew had forgotten. 

 

“It is a date,” Ben reaffirmed, now sitting straighter in his chair, “this is Rey.” He introduced her without a second thought, wanting to prove to Rey that he saw her as someone important.    
  
Stew and Rey looked incredulously at each other, while he said: “This is Stew. He’s second string.  _ Obviously _ .” If Stew wanted to play ‘the stronger dog fucks’ then Ben knew exactly how to get him on his knees. 

 

The introduction finished with the two nodding silently at each other.   
  
“And you are disturbing us, Stew. Fuck off and scrape up some music for the evening, or I swear to god Kim is going to think it was you who brought Justin Bieber songs to the party.”

 

“But…” he began, still unable to tear his eyes from Rey.

 

“Stew.” He fixed the guy with a threatening stare. “Fuck. Off.” 

 

Rey was as white as a sheet. Ben was kind of intimidating when he ordered around people for her sake. It was a strange feeling - being noticed, mattering enough for someone to be the center of attention. It was a brand new world for her.

 

She kept staring at Stew's retreating back, wondering how she had gotten under the protection of Ben Solo, and whether she should feel guilty about the little thrill she felt that the guy got reprimanded for ignoring her.

 

Ben cleared his throat.   
  
With a little hesitation he drew his eyebrows up,  formulating his next words, “Stew... he can be an idiot. Don’t mind him.”

 

“It’s okay - you know, you can always leave if you have something else to do-” Rey gulped, her eyes downcast, biting the inside of her cheeks.   
  
“Do you have plans for tonight?” Ben asked. 

 

Rey looked at him skeptically, unaware of what he was about to ask.

 

She shook her head, slightly clueless about where this was going. 

 

“No, I don't.”

 

“Would you be my date for the party tonight?” Ben asked immediately, his eyes sparkling, and he closed her hand between his huge palms.

 

“Is Stew going to be there?” Rey frowned. 

 

“Not if you don’t want him to,” Ben said darkly, meaning every word. His word was law and Stew was disposable. 

 

Rey shivered a little. She had never been someone who got noticed, or who had ever  had this kind of influence. It was tempting to finally let Ben show how far he was willing to go for her. But… but it felt wrong. She wasn’t one for payback, even if they had hurt her. 

 

“No,” she said calmly, “I think it’s alright. I’d… I’d very much like to be your date,” she said, her heart drumming in her throat. Ben had put his foot down for her. She felt invincible.

 

Their date wasn’t a secret Ben wanted to keep. He wanted to show her off on his arm to everyone he knew. She was dizzy with excitement, and a bit of fear. 

 

Fear that what had happened with Stew would repeat itself tenfold. 

 

But she couldn’t really think it through when Ben leaned into her space with a huge grin and pressed a kiss to her lips. 

 

“Thank you. Are you hungry? Perhaps we should grab a bite before the party?” Ben prompted, looking hopefully at Rey - knowing that his sunshine NEVER refused a chance to eat.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... wasn't that really lovely?
> 
> *melts*  
> 
> 
> Did you like Ben's background story in this one?  
> Was the date nice?  
> What will happen at the Party? Will Stew be an ass again?
> 
> Please let us know if you enjoyed this chapter by leaving a comment and/or a kudo, as that is food for our souls ;-)   
> Also please bookmark this fic if you haven't so far ;-)
> 
> As always a special thank you to our lovely beta readers  
> @Eliruise and @MyJediLife.... without you guys we would be lost! THANK YOU
> 
> See you next time to the party chapter   
> 

**Author's Note:**

> First of all: we wholeheartedly thank our wonderful and very quick beta, [Erulisse17. ](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Erulisse17/pseuds/Erulisse17)
> 
> Did you like it, though?  
> Has Ben enough of Han's swagger?  
> Is Rey adorable?  
>   
> How do you think will their study date continue in Ben's apartment?
> 
> Also we had a really fun time writing this, so we hope you did like it, too!
> 
> If yes --> PLEASE COMMENT and/or leave a kudo and don't forget to bookmark! <3


End file.
